Empty Soul
by Demonix Kata
Summary: Holding Fiona hostage isn't as easy a task as Raven thought it would be. Especially since he's falling in love with her. (Ya heard right! The pairing is Raven and Fiona! Kinda dark so be warned. Please review and don't flame!)
1. Mission Targeted

Disclaimer – I don't own Zoids or any of its characters. They belong to their respective creators.

Author's note: I decided to take a shot and write a Zoids Chaotic Century fic for a change. I hope you all enjoy it, but expect updates to be erratic. I'm especially going to need help with this one since Zoids CC is more complex than Zoids/Zero. But we can talk about that later.

This story takes during the Guardian Force part of Chaotic Century. Where in the Guardian Force timeline, I'm not too sure. Whatever makes you comfortable.

Dedicated to fire fox for giving me the idea with her constant "I love Raven"s and all. Thank you Fire Fox!

And don't forget to review!

-----------------------------

Empty Soul

By Demonix Kata

A lone figure stood atop a large hill that oversaw a Guardian Force base, his worn-out cape blowing in the night wind. The night sky glistened with sparkling stars and the moons were full and bright. The figure looked down at the base and knitted his brow, his face barely visible in the night air. A low snarl sounded behind him. A black organoid, with its robin's egg eyes glowing in the darkness, was getting anxious.

"Calm down, Shadow," said the man, "This will be over soon enough."

The organoid made another low growl and the man smirked.

"I know you'll enjoy this as much as I," he said.

He hopped off the hilltop and slid down into the valley, followed by his black organoid.

They soon reached the bottom and proceeded toward the base. 

Two men were guarding the base entrance. They could spot their silhouettes quickly if they weren't careful. So the man and his organoid dove behind a rock for cover. He could have sworn he heard one of the guards ask the other if he heard something. _Raven, if you want to do this right, you'll have to be careful!_

Raven peeked over the rock to get a better look at the guards. The lights to the entrance were bright and vivid. It'd be hard to sneak in without catching the guards' attention. Something had to be done about them.

And it's not like Raven didn't _want_ to murder, anyway.

He smiled smugly. This would cause for superior stealth abilities than he intended to use.

"Come on, Shadow," he said quietly. The organoid let out a small growl in compliance.

They stood up and walked quietly across the sandy ground.

One of the guards yawned. He really didn't feel like doing the night shift. The other guard was slowly lolling, destined for sleep. It was obvious that neither of them wanted to be out there.

They wouldn't be for long.

Raven and Shadow slowly walked forward, towards the two men. The two guards didn't hear a thing until Shadow accidentally kicked a rock.

"What was that?" asked a guard. Both men drew their guns and aimed them at the darkness.

"Who goes there?!"

"Don't make us shoot!"

Two thwacks hit each of them on the back of the neck. Immediately the guards slunk down, out like lights. Raven rose from behind them and smirked.

"That takes care of them," he said smugly.

 Shadow growled quietly.

"You're right. We can't risk them getting up again. You can handle this one."

The organoid's black metal skin shined in the light as he raised his foot and aimed his sharp sword-like toes downward.

With a huge thrust, he brought it down onto backs of the guards. The sound of breaking bones was music to Raven's ears. He smiled a sadistic smile.

"Of course, now this means you can't follow me. Wouldn't want you tracking blood on the floor."

Shadow let out a mournful growl.

"Relax. Just watch my back for trouble."

Raven broke through the base's entrance. The hallways were dimly lit and the entire place was quiet. He'd have to be extra careful. The last thing he needed was to wake any of the personnel. No, he was going to finish this job.

Raven was never much of a stealth person. He usually just went head on and whoever crossed his path would have a date with their maker.

But this plan caused for stealth and sneaking if he wanted this job done right.

He slunk by the corners and shadows of the hall.

There was a certain room he had to find. A certain room he sought.

Now if only he could find that room.

The hallway led to many rooms. Some of them led to rooms with computers. Places where they researched, Raven figured. Things on Zoid Eve, organoids, and the like. Probably had files on him too. But he wasn't interested in that right now. Maybe later, when he destroys everything and everyone in here with his Geno Breaker.

He slunk through the shadows, down many hallways and corridors, hoping to find clues to the whereabouts of his destination.

He had to be extra quiet since it seemed nobody was awake. Curses, he didn't want to have to work this hard. This should've been easy but the place was so big.

Voices!

Raven froze. Apparently not everyone was sleeping. His head darted left and right, looking for a place to hide and fast.  Fortunately, there was an empty room to his left. He quickly dove into the room and hid in its dark shadows.

The voices were getting closer and closer. Raven was soon able to distinguish those voices as female. One was haughty and confident, the other more soft and feminine.

Bingo.

His target was sighted, and now he had to figure out how to do this without causing much ruckus. Plus the possible interference of that other young woman would make things difficult.

Oh well, like he said, it's not like he didn't _want_ to murder.

Raven grew tense as the two females walked into the room, one a brunette with slightly tan skin, the other a blond with porcelain white skin. This must've been their quarters as they were about to make themselves comfortable on the two twin beds. Raven kept quiet in the shadows. His raven black hair and dark clothing made it very easy to be concealed in the darkness. He just hoped they wouldn't turn on the lights.

"Fiona, you've been working too hard. You need to cut yourself some slack," said the tan-skinned girl. The blond, Fiona, gave her friend a small smile.

"I just want to be as useful as I can be, Moonbay. Van, Thomas, and Irvine are always going out on their missions and even you go along sometimes. All I do is sit there typing away doing research for the Guardian Force. So I work as hard as I can to help Van in any way. Even if it means working into the wee hours of the night."

Moonbay threw her hands up in exasperation.

"Isn't that being useful enough? Fiona, sometimes you're too hard on yourself."

"I'm sorry, Moonbay. I didn't mean to irritate you," she said, closing the door shut.

Moonbay's face softened and she shook her head and looked at the blonde with sweet eyes.

"You're not irritating me, hon. It's hard to be annoyed with you. You're just too sweet."

Fiona blushed.

"Um, thank you. I guess," she said almost embarrassingly. Moonbay chuckled.

"Come on, let's just go to sleep. You'll work more in the morning."

_Only one of you will be going to sleep tonight. Whether you'll wake up will be debatable._

"Alright. Good night, Moonbay."

"G'night."

_That's my cue._

Raven lifted his knife. A little light reflected on the blade, which was unfortunate for him as it got the blond's attention.

"Moonbay! Look out!" cried Fiona, except the cry wasn't loud, but more like a whisper.

"Huh?" Moonbay looked behind her and saw a knife headed for her face. She quickly sat up from the bed and dodged.

Raven leapt up at the brunette. Moonbay brought a knee sharply into Raven's stomach, forcing the air out of him. Raven doubled over Moonbay's knee in agony. Moonbay slammed her elbow into the back of Raven's neck, but it wasn't forceful enough to break it. Raven did drop to the floor however.

"Is he dead?" Fiona asked timidly.

A sharp "No!" was said, but not by Moonbay. Raven shot and took out his knife again. The butt of the knife connected with Moonbay's chin viciously. Moonbay staggered back clutching her face. Raven didn't think for he knew what he wanted to do next. He aimed the knife at the brunette and drove it into her abdomen. The piercing pain struck her like lightning. Add to that a second bash into the face by Raven's rock-hard fist and she couldn't go on any longer. She immediately slunk to the floor, her eyes dilated like the dead, her breathing hoarse and becoming few and far between. Raven left her to drown in her own blood, which was increasing by the second because of the knife injury.

Fiona was frozen with fear. How could she have let that happen? Her own friend, who she loved very much, was close to death. And she just stood there, didn't even call for help. And her killer stood there staring at Fiona, signaling that it wasn't over yet.

Oh no. 

With liquid speed he ran up and got behind her, grabbed her, and brought the bloody knife to her neck. He didn't have to say a word or give any threats for the message was clear. The knife pressed down on her skin enough so that a small trickle blood seeped out of her skin and dripped down the knife mixing with Moonbay's blood, still stained on the blade.

Raven dragged the blonde over to the room exit and looked down the hall. Not a person in sight. He retraced his step stealthily back to the base entrance where Shadow still waited, looming over the two bodies of the guards.

The organoid tilted its head at the sight of his friend holding some girl.

"I'm back Shadow. Didn't take long at all," Raven said smugly.

Shadow let out a small grumble.

"No, I didn't kill her," said Raven. He looked down at the young woman and noticed that she had gone limp. He put his hand over her chest to feel a heartbeat. Thankfully, it was still there. Breathing steadily too. She must've fainted. Made it all the much more convenient for him.

Raven mounted Fiona onto his organoid. Shadow fidgeted a bit and grumbled.

"Come one Shadow. We can leave this place now that our mission is complete," Raven said. The two walked off into the desert horizon with their brand new prisoner.

--------------------

That concludes Chapter 1. What do you think? If you don't know by now, this will be a Raven-centric fic, but I am always open to suggestions. And there are a few things I need to know.

I could use some more information on Raven. The last thing I wanna do is have him act OOC so if someone could help me out with writing about him, I would be grateful. I've seen the show, but I'm not sure if I got his personality down right.

Plus I wouldn't mind a beta-reader who has a lot of knowledge on Zoids CC/GF. I've seen the entire show, but some parts I'm still not too clear on so if someone could help me with that, I would be grateful. Just e-mail me.

And that's it for now. Please Review and give feedback. I'd appreciate it. And don't flame!


	2. Waking to a Nightmare

Raven and Shadow quietly marched through the desert terrain. Fiona still lay on the organoid's back, motionless. It had been at least a half hour since they had broken into the Guardian Force's base. Raven was still surprised how easy it had been. Maybe he should've just screwed the mission and just killed Van if he could find him.

No, that was no good. He would have preferred doing that on the battlefield. It wouldn't have been the same otherwise.

He did take pleasure in thinking about the reactions on the teams' faces when they woke up and found Fiona gone, and Moonbay possibly dead. An evil smirk appeared across his face.

They came across a small cabin on top of a cliff that oversaw another town. They were going to stay here for the night. Raven had already taken care of the original owners. They were hermits anyway, so he didn't have to worry about people looking for them.

He was also instructed to hide his Genobreaker in a canyon not too far away from here. No one was to know that the merciless killer was hiding out in this small house.

Raven opened the door and stepped in followed by Shadow. He closed it tight and Shadow let out a huge sigh.

Raven picked up the blond Zoidian and held her in his arms. He walked up to a bed to set her down. But before he did, he gave her a look over. He couldn't help but stare at her helpless figure. Her face looked pale and hurting. Raven almost felt sorry for her. Keyword being "almost." Her face, though, was almost…angelic.

Shadow snarled loudly.

"What?" Raven demanded. He laid her down on the bed and turned to his organoid. Shadow shook his head disdainfully.

"What are you staring at?" Raven demanded again.

"I think the question is, what were _you_ staring at?" said a voice. Both Raven and Shadow nearly jumped ten feet into the air. Their heads twirled around to find a blue organoid and a woman dressed in blue.

"Reese! What the hell are you doing here?" Raven asked angrily. Reese stroked her blue organoid on the nose.

"Hiltz wanted me and Specula to wait for you here. To make sure you got the job done," she said simply.

"Well you can tell him mission accomplished. I brought the girl. You gonna take her or what?" Raven said with his usual attitude.

"No. Hiltz wants to come for this lovely girl himself. He just wants you to watch her for tonight."

 Raven folded his arms.

"Well that shouldn't take long. Dawn should be here any minute now."

"Try four hours."

Raven rolled his eyes.

"I'll be back in the morning after I relay the information that you succeeded. You take care of Fiona now. Come on, Specula." Reese ushered her blue organoid out the door and waved at Raven. He scowled.

He walked back to his organoid who was looking over their prisoner. Shadow purred.

"You think she looks like an angel? Maybe. I think I can see what Van sees in her, but I don't look for that. I have no need for that."

Shadow looked at his dark-haired friend.

"I'm going to sleep. You watch over her for the night if you like. I have a feeling she won't be getting up anytime soon."

Shadow pointed at her face. Raven looked and saw her closed eyes twitching a little. She moved slightly. But not much.

"Okay, maybe you'll have to keep a closer eye on her than I thought. Good night, Shadow."

Raven walked into another room, presumably the den, and laid on the couch and closed his eyes, letting sleep take over.

****

An hour later, a body stirred in it's roost. A pair of sunset red eyes opened after what seemed like an eternity of sleeping. Fiona had finally awoken.

She shot up from her head and looked around alarmingly. _Where am I?_

She looked below and saw a black mass sleeping soundly. It was too dark to tell if it was a dog or something. But it was definitely a beast.

She looked more closely and noticed it resembled a giant lizard. Kind of like an organoid.

That's when it her. That's when she remembered.

_Raven_.

She remembered how he had attacked Moonbay and stabbed her in the gut. How he put a knife to her own throat and kidnapped her. And for what?

Her thoughts quickly dragged back to Moonbay and how she lay unconscious, sinking in her own sea of blood. How long had it been? Did anyone find her? Hopefully she was alive.

Where was that murderer? If anything happened to her, Fiona would personally kill Raven herself. Unless Irvine or Van did it first because she knew their desire for revenge would be as great as hers if not greater.

Then she remembered Van. Her anger soon turned to sadness. What was he doing? How would he react to her missing? Would she ever see him again?

Fiona was getting close to tears. She didn't even know what Raven wanted from her.

She knew she wasn't going to find out. Rather than wait around and be a damsel in distress, she decided to break for it on her own.

She quietly stepped over the black organoid and tiptoed towards the door. Her soft footsteps were barely audible, even a dog would have a hard time listening for it. There was just something about the way Fiona walked. It was so elegant and so graceful, that a certain raven-haired warrior couldn't help but watch.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Fiona froze with fear. But she hadn't seen him. Of course how could she with all the dark colors he wore and the darkness around him?

"Shadow."

Shadow instantly got up as if he hadn't been sleeping at all.

"Some watchdog you are. Couldn't even do a decent job," Raven said walking towards the blond. Shadow growled, yet it was hard to tell if it was aimed at Raven or Fiona.

Fiona knitted her brow and clenched her teeth. She made a mad dash to the door, but Raven grabbed her by the arm and stopped the pitiful attempt.

He swung her around and blocked the cabin exit.

For a while, they just stared at each other, neither of them saying a word. They didn't even blink. Fiona hadn't been this close to Raven since they first encountered each other. Roughly four years ago. Though she did wonder why she was still alive. What was going on in the big picture here?

She bit her lip.

"Raven," she finally said, "What do you want with me?"

Raven pointed to the bed.

"Go to bed," he said to her as if she were a little child.

"No," she said defiantly, "I want answers. Why…why did you kidnap me and kill Moonbay? Just what kind of game are you trying to set up? I think I deserve to know." No answer. Fiona's eyes were nearing tears again, remembering her dead friend. Maybe she wasn't dead and she survived. But it didn't seem likely.

She felt a resurgence of anger and clenched her teeth again.

"Tell me NOW, Raven! Or maybe I'll just up and leave if you're going to play the weak-minded fool," she said. She decided to act upon her words and began to push Raven aside and leave this place.

The mistake proved fatal. Raven grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her violently against the wall. He wrapped his hands around her neck and clenched his teeth in anger. He placed his thumbs in front of her neck and threatened to press forward.

"Listen, princess," he began menacingly, "Don't you _ever_ forget that I could destroy you in an instant. I exist only to kill. If I had it my way, you would've been dead already. So if I were you, I would watch my tongue. Remember that."

He really wanted to squeeze the life out of the wench. He stared at her with the most venomous eyes. Fiona's eyes were full of fear. She was absolutely terrified. It was like she just now realized how much of a monster he was.

It…hurt.

It hurt him. Raven saw the fear and his look became less venomous, to his surprise. He loved living off of others' fear. It's what he lived for. But this face, the look of fear on this angelic face…

His grip became less strong and he eventually let go. Fiona was still sweating bullets from anxiety. Raven cleared his throat.

"Go to bed," he said to her and slowly walked away. "Shadow keep an eye on her, got it? Don't screw up."

Shadow nodded. Raven walked back into the den and laid on the couch and closed his eyes.

_If I had the answers, I would've answered your questions_, he thought. _And that's not a good thing._

******

A/N: Hope I didn't overdo anything. Please review!


	3. Trusting a Monster

Oh, man, I am soooo sorry for the delay. I didn't mean for this chapter to take this long. Please forgive me, but school is making it REALLY hard for me to find time to write. I'm looking at all the reviews that came in _just_ for Chapter 2. And you all waited so long. I promise, the next Chapter won't take as long. At least I hope it doesn't. Some things are beyond my control. I know it's hard to believe, but it's true. ^_~

Since you all waited so long, I'm not even gonna wait for my beta-reader. You are getting this hot off the press (I did check for grammar and spelling, though).

Once again, sorry. I hope this chapter doesn't suck and reaches the same quality of the last two chapters. Thanks for the reviews.

Disclaimer – If you care that much, then read the beginning of Chapter 1! :P

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Early next morning was greeted by the bright orange sunrise. 

Raven got up from the couch and yawned from his three-hour sleep. The only thing on his mind was how much longer it was going to be until Fiona was off his hands. He didn't even know why Hiltz asked him to kidnap her. But he didn't care. He just needed an excuse to see if breaking into Van's base was possible. And now that he knew it was, he considered paying them a little visit.

But first things first. He had to go meet someone.

He got up and walked into the bathroom to take a nice hot shower. While hot drops of water washed over his body, his thoughts drifted to last night. How Fiona had to be reminded of her place. How he wanted to show her exactly why she shouldn't talk to him like that, but couldn't bring himself to it. Not like him at all. He wrote it off as not wanting to endanger her because it would interfere with Hiltz's plans. But that still didn't explain his personal feelings. While he should've felt hatred or annoyance, he instead felt hurt as if he didn't want Fiona thinking of him as a monster.

_Whatever._

Raven got out of the shower and dried himself off. After he was dressed and ready, he went to check on Fiona.

Shadow was looming over her fallen figure, tilting his head as if something was wrong.

"What is it, Shadow?" asked Raven, walking up to the organoid. Shadow pointed to Fiona's face. Raven looked down and raised an eyebrow.

"She looks a little pale," the warrior observed. Shadow nodded. Fiona's eyes were giving off a small twitch again. She even gave out a small, fearful whimper. Raven chuckled.

"What's the matter, princess? Am I giving you nightmares?"

Raven turned around and headed towards the door.

"You know the drill, Shadow. Keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn't leave. Use any means necessary to keep her here," he said, and then decided to add, "Just don't kill her." In case Shadow thought any means really did mean _any_ means. He didn't want to come back to a corpse, after all.

"I won't be long."

He closed the door behind him and left.

*    *    *    *

Fiona opened her eyes only to see an ugly organoid's face right in front of hers.

She screamed in surprise causing Shadow to scream as well. The organoid jumped at least ten feet back. Fiona sat up and saw that she was still in the same place as she was last night. So it wasn't a nightmare after all.

She felt incredibly sick. She wished someone would just come and get her out of this hellhole already. She didn't want to stay with this merciless soul and his dark organoid. Shadow was definitely no Zeke. Just what could he be doing this morning?

Now that she thought of it, Raven didn't exactly leave any leads. How would they find her?

Fear. It was all she was feeling. She was no longer angry. She was no longer sad. Fear was the only emotion she was capable of feeling right now.

Shadow tilted his head and stared at her. She was unmoving except for the steady sounds of her breath. Shadow sensed the terror she was feeling inside. He debated in his head whether he should do anything about it or leave her be.

Fiona tried to stand up, but she was weak in the knees. She just sat back down on the bed and put her hand over her eyes.

"Curse you, Raven," she sobbed softly. Shadow walked up to the girl and looked her in the eyes. Fiona gasped at its monstrous muzzle.

There was a sparkle in Shadow's bright blue eyes, which calmed Fiona down a little. She realized she had to stop treating Shadow like a monster that was going to hurt her. Shadow was really no different from Zeke. He's just following orders and being loyal. The only true monster here, as far as she was concerned, was Raven.

With this in mind, she reached out and touched Shadow. The organoid grew a little tense. He was not expecting to be touched, but he calmed down soon afterwards. There was just something about Fiona's touch that was calming and almost had him gazing off into a dream-like state. Fiona smiled a little, after hearing Shadow purr like a kitten. This did ease some of the tension as she stroked his muzzle softly and delicately.

But it wasn't long before Raven's fierce scowl flashed in her mind. She instantly took her hand back and cradled it in the other. Shadow tilted his head again, confused at the sudden gesture.

Shrugging it off, Shadow sauntered toward the door and curled up in front of it. He was still tired, getting the same amount of sleep Raven had, and really wanted to make it up. As long as he sat right here, Fiona couldn't escape. If she were to try another way of escape, Shadow's lightning-quick reflexes would alert him and he'd be all over her like a bad itch.

Fiona turned her head away from him. The ugly organoid did nothing but make her think of Raven.

She got up from the bed and looked herself over. Man, was she dirty. The desert sand and dirt had been all over her and there was a small scar on her neck from where Raven pressed the knife against her throat the night before. Luckily, it was barely noticeable. She gathered what energy she could muster and walked out of the room to explore the house.

It was a one-story house. Built for a family of two, she figured. Possibly three. The room she was in had two doors, one leading to the den, the other the kitchen. The den had a room that led to two rooms, one leading to a bedroom, the other the bathroom.

She went into the bathroom when she started having a sudden headache. She put her hand onto her forehead in pain. Seeing as there was nothing she could do about it, she did her best to ignore it and disrobed. She might as well take a nice hot shower and make the best of it.

The water dropped down from the showerhead and slid down her body. The dirt and grime from last night found a new home down the drain. While the shower felt good, it did not disperse Fiona's negative thoughts. She knew there was no way out of this. She knew all was lost. Van would never know where she is. Raven was too slick. He was just too slick. They would never find her.

And Moonbay.

If Fiona wasn't thinking about Van, she was thinking about Moonbay. Fiona would keep revisiting these thoughts and how hopeless it all was.

And Raven.

Raven was going to kill her. She knew it.

The way he grabbed her last night and shoved her against the wall, nearly breaking her back. And his words:

"Listen, princess. Don't you ever forget that I could destroy you in an instant. I exist only to kill. If I had it my way, you would've been dead already. So if I were you, I would watch my tongue. Remember that."

He said it himself. He existed only to kill. And it's what he ended up doing unless something worthy held him back.

Killing her would be the ultimate insult to Van. Raven wanted nothing more than to see Van break down into a pathetic state where he couldn't live anymore and snuffing Fiona out would do just that. There was nothing that would stop Raven from doing that. Nothing.

So he was going to. Fiona knew it. And with the sudden pang of trauma from that knowledge made her faint in the shower.

*    *    *    *

"What the hell are you doing here?!"

"Is that how you're going to greet me now?"

Raven was on top of a desolate hill overlooking a town where he expected to meet Hiltz. Instead Reese and Specula were there, greeting him with a smug smile.

Raven sighed.

"What is it then? Why are you here now?" he asked.

"There's been sudden change in plans," Reese answered.

"A change in plans?"

"Hiltz has hit a bit of a snag and won't be coming for an entire week."

"An entire week?"

"You're going to have to watch the girl until he's ready."

"Watch the girl until he's ready?!" Raven cried out incredulously. He couldn't believe this.

"My, aren't we in an 'echoing' mood today," Reese mocked. Raven growled.

"That is NOT funny, Reese!" he exclaimed, "What the hell am I suppose to do with her for an entire week?"

"Feed her, house her, keep her alive. Think of it as taking care of someone's pet while they're away," Reese joked, followed by a chuckle. Raven grimaced.

"This is not funny. This is not funny. This is not funny!!!" he yelled.

"What's the matter, Raven? Afraid of having actual human contact instead of being around that ugly organoid of yours all the time?" Reese snickered. Raven shoved a finger into her face and opened his mouth as if to say something. But nothing came. He hesitantly pulled back his finger and his hand dropped to his side.

"Just watch over her until Hiltz arrives," said Reese.

"Fine," Raven said with nothing more to say. Reese and Specula turned and walked away. Raven heaved a huge sigh. Now what was he going to? How was he supposed to take care of Fiona?

On the walk back to the cabin, he debated whether or not he should even bother. There was nothing in this for him. He didn't need to endure this. Fiona would never cooperate long enough. He knew she was a smart girl. She helped Van get this far. It would only take a week for her to figure out an escape.

"Well. Then I just won't give her any time to think. She'll just feel," Raven said smugly. As long as she feared him, she wouldn't have any time to think clearly. She'll just fear him and probably cower in a corner all week. Raven could handle that. He smiled at the thought.

He finally made it back to the cabin. He opened up the door and walked in. His eyes grew wide. Fiona was gone and Shadow was nowhere to be seen.

"Shadow?" Raven called out. The black organoid bolted into the room, urgency written all over his face.

"What is it, Shadow? Where is Fiona?" Raven demanded. He walked over to the organoid and looked him square in the eyes.

"You didn't let her escape, did you? 'Cause if you did…"

Shadow snarled and ran into the den. Raven followed and heard the water running in the bathroom. The door was open. An instant blush spread across Raven's face.

"Is she…showering in there?" Raven said quietly. Shadow smacked his forehead in a "no duh!" gesture. But the he returned to his troubled face. Something was wrong, so he gestured Raven to go inside. Raven shook his head.

"No way I'm going there. Besides, she needs her privacy." Raven was surprised at the words coming out of his voice. Normally, he didn't give a damn if he was busting in on people's privacy or not.

Shadow sighed and ran inside himself. Raven heard the faucet turning off and a towel being placed over something. But wouldn't Fiona scream if Shadow walked in on her?

Raven narrowed his eyebrows. Something was wrong.

He decided to walk in after all.

He busted into the bathroom and yelled, "What's going on Shadow?!" very tersely. Shadow jumped then regained his composure. He pointed into the bathtub.

Slowly, Raven's eyes trailed from Shadow's claw to the object he was pointing at. It was no object. It was Fiona.

She was lying naked, under the towel Shadow had kindly placed over her, and lifeless. Raven's eyes grew wide. So did the blush across his face.

"What happened?"

Shadow shrugged. 

"Maybe she's sick," he figured, "But…what do I do?"

Shadow just walked out of the bathroom. He did what he had to do.

"Well you're no help!" Raven spat. He turned his head back to Fiona and gulped.

What am I doing? He thought. This is ridiculous. Just pick her up already.

Hesitantly, he put his arms around her and lifted her up. He didn't want to think of anything else but to get her out of here and back on the bed. But his mind did wander to other things. Things a hardened warrior like him shouldn't be thinking about. But as he walked back to Fiona's bed, he did. He couldn't get over the fact that he held a beautiful woman in his arms.

He placed Fiona gently on the bed. He wondered if he should leave her there in that wet towel. He decided he shouldn't and wanted to remove it. His hand grabbed towel and he slowly lifted it up.

A big tail smacked his wrist.

"Ouch!" he yelled, cradling it. He glared at Shadow who had done the damage. "Why'd you do that?!"

Shadow raised one finger and swayed it side-to-side. Raven scoffed.

"Oh please. The towel's wet. She can't lie in it all day."

Shadow insisted he do it and he'd also put a fresh blanket over her as well. Raven said "Fine" and walked towards the windowsill and stared out the window. When Shadow was done, he signaled Raven to come over. Raven muttered under his breath as he walked back over. He folded his arms and looked back down at the young woman. Her cheeks were flushed. He could hear her moaning softly.

"She's sick," Raven said softly. He took off one the glove on his right hand. He placed his bare hand on Fiona's forehead. It was burning as hot as the red sun in her eyes.

"How in the world did she get sick? She looked fine last night."

Maybe she isn't sick. Maybe her body failed her because of shock. He couldn't blame her. He did give her quite the scare and he wasn't sorry at all. She deserved it.

But he had to make sure she stayed healthy so Hiltz wouldn't be mad at him. He didn't know Hiltz's power and he didn't want to test it right now, so he had to make sure Fiona was all right.

Yet, he also wanted to help Fiona simply because he wanted to. He tried denying it, but how can one deny his own feelings?

"I wonder if the old residents had something in that kitchen over there…"

Fiona's eyes opened slowly. She was back in the bed. She wondered if she even got up in the first place. Was she just dreaming it?

She saw Shadow taking a nap on the floor. He was in a corner of the room instead of in front of the entrance this time. She got up and removed the covers and noticed she felt a bit drafty. She looked at herself and instantly threw the covers back on herself. A thin red string grew across her face. She was naked. Guess it wasn't a dream. She remembered taking a shower, then collapsing. Who brought here?

The question was soon answered when a familiar warrior walked into the room with a bowl in his hands.

"You're up," he said. Fiona suddenly felt nauseous. Great, not only was she in this evil man's clutches, she was also feeling ill. Just great.

 Raven knelt down beside her and handed her the bowl.

"Here," he said as gently as he could, "It's miso soup. It should make you feel better."

Fiona looked at the bowl. Who was this boy fooling? She wouldn't eat anything from him even if he held the last food on Zi. She turned her head away.

"Come on, you have to get better!" he said, impatiently.

'Why do you care?' she wanted to yell, but she couldn't. No voice could come from her mouth. She felt weak.

"What, do you want me to feed you or something?" Raven wondered rudely. Fiona just looked down, her eyes almost shut.

Raven gritted his teeth in frustration, but sighed. He reached for the spoon and stirred the soup a little. He took a spoonful and blew on it.

"Here," he said as Fiona looked up. She saw the spoon stopping at her mouth.

Should I? She wasn't sure. She felt something about him. Something she couldn't put her finger on. It didn't make much sense, really.

She opened her mouth as the spoon entered. She swallowed. Raven looked at her with a confused expression.

I don't believe this. Something wasn't quite right. He didn't have to do this. He didn't have to do anything. But he did. And he was beginning to…

No. He quickly banished that thought. He was just doing a duty. That's what he kept telling himself.

He gave Fiona three more spoonfuls. Shadow started stirring and before long he got up. He saw the scene of Raven feeding Fiona. He suddenly had an idea. Raven would have his neck for this, but he decided to risk it.

"Ready for another," Raven asked. Fiona nodded. He took another spoonful of miso soup and blew on it.

"ROOOOOAAAAARRRR!!!!"

Fiona and Raven jumped. The bowl of soup flew up into the air and came crashing down onto Raven's head. Miso soup was dripping down Raven's face. He was soaked. Shadow bellowed in laughter while Raven started steaming. This was so not funny.

"You dumb dinosaur!" Raven raged with the bowl still on his head, "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't rip your head off!!!"

But there was more laughter going around. Raven turned and saw the blond Zoidian laughing. Fiona. Laughing. It started out as a small chuckle until it became a frivolous giggle.

Raven's stone cold face began to soften. For the first time, in a long time, he couldn't stay mad. A smile as well as a blush crept across his face. He closed his eyes and folded his arms.

Oh, gods of Zi, he thought to himself, what is happening to me?

---------------------

And that's Chapter 3. I decided to lighten up the mood of this story with a little humor. But the overall tone of this story will stay dark. This won't be your average romance story, just to let you know. Next chapter will continue the development of Raven and Fiona's relationship and might let you finally know what's going on with Van and the others (if not chapter 4, then chapter 5).

If you have any comments/question e-mail me and please review!


	4. Of All the Luck

I live!!!!! I know it's been a while since I updated so I won't waste any time. My mindless blather will have to wait until the end of this chapter. But I just want to thank you all for your reviews and your patience. Waiting is never fun. Unless it's for death. Then we can wait all we want.

Dedication – to Fire Fox, the stick all Raven fans should be measured by!

---------------

Fiona sat in the backseat of the Blade Liger while Van piloted it across the desert sand. The Blade Liger glided valiantly with each pounding step on the desert floor.

"You okay back there, Fiona?" Van asked, looking back at her from the front seat. Fiona smiled at him.

"Of course, Van," she answered, "I'm fine."

Van returned the smile and turned his head back to the front. This is what Fiona enjoyed. Riding with Van as he took the Blade Liger out for a run with Zeke running along side. No worries, no cares, no responsibilities. She always felt safe with Van around. He had always been there for her ever since he found her in that capsule along with Zeke the organoid oh so long ago. She respected and loved him very much. She couldn't imagine life without Van. And she was sure Van felt likewise.

The Blade Liger continued to run further and further under the purplish evening sky when a dark Zoid loomed over the horizon. It stood next to a large and beautiful oasis that complemented the desert prospect perfectly. Too bad the Zoid symbolized hatred and evil.

"Van…it's…the Genobreaker!" Fiona cried.

"Hm, so it is," Van said, casually, "Guess that means Raven's back in town."

Van stopped his Zoid next to the oasis and opened the cockpit.

"Come with me," he instructed Fiona. Fiona stayed in her seat for a minute, uncertain of what was going on. But she decided to listen to Van and jumped down from the Zoid with him.

Van and Fiona walked into the oasis. It was a peaceful scene, with luscious, green plants and trees all around it. Sparkling, water ran through a brook under a bridge that led to the other side of the oasis. On top of that bridge stood a raven-haired warrior, leaning on the rail and gazing out into the distance.

"Raven!" Fiona cried. Van laughed.

"Yeah. Why don't you go say hi?" Van suggested and pushed Fiona forward. Zeke let out a giddy roar. Fiona looked at Van with a "what in the world is going on?" face. Van gave a reassuring smile and motioned her to go on. She didn't know why she agreed, but she did. She walked across the path and up to the bridge to meet the warrior. When she finally got there, the warrior looked at her and gave her the warmest smile Fiona had ever seen. 

Fiona leaned on the rail next to him and gazed out into the horizon. After a long silence, Raven spoke.

"Beautiful scene, isn't it?" he said quietly.

Fiona half-smiled. "Yes, it is. And," she looked up at her dark-haired lover, "I can't imagine someone I'd rather spend it with than you."

Raven looked back at her with affectionate eyes. "Likewise, Fiona." He looked down. "Oh darn. My shoelace is untied. Could you hold on for a moment?" He bent down while Fiona looked back at the horizon.

"This is the most beautiful oasis I've ever seen," Fiona commented. She put her elbow up on the rail, rested her head on her palm, closed her eyes, and listened to the serene sound of the running water underneath.

"Fiona?"

Fiona opened her eyes and looked down at Raven. Her eyes grew wide. He was down on one knee and holding up a small open ring case with a diamond ring inside.

"You're the most beautiful girl I have ever laid eyes on. You're the only one that understands me and I could never imagine loving _any_one else, more than you. Fiona, will you marry me?" Raven proposed with the most sincere tone. There was no word good enough to explain how Fiona felt right now. She didn't expect this at all. She looked back at Van who only had a look of amusement on his face. Did he know this all along? Was that why he had invited her to ride the Blade Liger with him?

She looked back at Raven.

"Uh…um…I…" she said.

"If it's too early, I'd understand," Raven said, slowly getting up. Fiona grabbed his hand. Tears welled up in her eyes as she smiled.

"Yes," she said, "Yes, I do! I do Raven! I do!" She threw her arms around the man. Raven hugged her and planted a kiss on her cheek.

"I love you," he whispered to her ear.

"I love you too, Raven," Fiona said, crying tears of joy, "I love you, too."

Fiona shot up from her bed in a cold sweat. _What…what kind of dream was that?!_

Fiona rubbed the sweat off her forehead and breathed heavily. She was still in the bed and Shadow was staring out the window with his tail swaying side to side. It was evening. The sickness she was feeling must've put her to sleep.

She still felt somewhat nauseous, though it could have now been for a different reason. The dream she had about meeting Raven at the oasis and accepting his proposal. She couldn't stomach the idea.

Shadow didn't seem to interested in Fiona's getting up since he continued staring out the window. Like he was waiting for something.

Fiona remembered. Just where was Raven? Did he leave again?

She noticed her clothes sitting at the foot of her bed. They were neatly folded and a note sat on top of them. She picked it up and read it. It said:

Fiona:

I washed your clothes for you. Put them on when you get up.

-Raven

Raven? Fiona didn't know what to think.

Fiona threw the note down and got up from her bed. She picked up her clothes and slipped them on. It did surprise her that Raven would do this. He didn't seem to care for her at all so why would he try to be hospitable? She did remember him making and feeding her the soup earlier today. What was the boy planning? Why did he have her in his care in the first place?

She remembered her dream about accepting Raven's marriage proposal. She let out a sardonic chuckle.

"Married to Raven," she said to herself as she put on her clothes, "Was that really a dream or a nightmare?"

*    *    *    *

"Here you go, young man," said the merchant as he handed Raven his purchase.

"Is this enough?" he asked, handing the man his money.

"Actually, it's more than enough."

"Keep the change, then."

Raven took his leave and walked out of the pharmacy. He wore a hood over his head to conceal his face. He hadn't been sighted for days and he wanted it to stay that way for now. He wasn't ready to mess with Van just yet.

He wanted to get this to Fiona as soon as possible. He didn't want a sick girl to be on his hands for a whole week. 

He tried to convince himself that her survival meant nothing to him. He didn't care if he ruined Hiltz's plans. It was of little significance to him. However, he had a gut feeling that this was what he had to do and it would benefit him in the end.

"Who knows?" he said to himself as walked the town streets, "I could use her to my advantage."

"Somebody stop him!" yelled a voice.

Raven looked over his shoulder. A child was running at breakneck speed, being chased by a man. Presumably a merchant.

"That little thief stole my papayas! Get back here, punk!" the old shopkeeper yelled.

Raven scoffed and walked about his way. He wanted to get home fast and not be bothered. But that wouldn't happen. The child bumped into him, catching him off-guard and making him fall flat on his face. Raven turned around and shot daggers at the boy.

"You stupid kid!" he yelled in fury. His hood slipped down revealing his face making everybody around him freeze in their tracks. The old man's face was drained of his blood and turned blue.

"It-it-it-it-it-it's…" he stuttered.

"Raven!" finished another fearful cry. Raven panicked. This was not supposed to happen.

The child smirked.

"Thanks, Mr. Raven. Now all eyes are on you and the lil' thief can run away, scot-free." He said, taking a bite out of the stolen papaya. Raven seized the boy's neck and started squeezing it violently.

"You bastard! I'll kill you!" he shouted.

"Look, he's going to kill a kid!" shouted a lady.

_Aw, crap, I made it worse. _he thought.

He had to get out there fast. The last thing he wanted to do was attract the attention of-

"Raven?"

Raven's head twirled around so fast it could have spun off.

"No not you!" he said, but it came out in a low, tiny voice. He looked up at the figure of Van Flyheight, his enemy and rival. Raven let go of the kid and stood up, facing in him. Van scowled.

"So you've finally shown your face," he said seriously. Raven smirked.

"As much as I'd love to banter with you, Flyheight, now's not really the time. I'm not one to do this, but-"

Raven took off in a run. Van called after him, but did he really expect him to listen? None of the people would get in his way. They were all dead afraid of him and actually moved out of the way.

_Some help_, Van cursed them as he ran after his rival. Raven tried to swim through the sea of people, in hope of losing Van, but he wouldn't let him out of his sight.

He turned a corner and ran into an alleyway. He stopped at the wall and looked it over. Van caught up to him.

"There's no place to run now, Raven," he said through heavy breaths, "Come with me now and I'll make sure they give you mercy."

Raven turned around and laughed leaving Van confused.

"You actually think I'd run into an alley without any means of escape? I'm insulted!" he mocked. With swift speed he jumped over the wall and escaped. Van clenched his teeth in anger. He slammed his fist against the wall.

"Great! First Fiona, now this. What else could go wrong?"

* * * *

Raven sprinted out of the city and back to his hideout, hoping Van wouldn't follow him.

"That's just great," Raven said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "Now Van's on to me. But why did he have to show up now? I guess I should've expected him to start his search for that dumb blond as soon as possible. I just hope he doesn't put two and two together so quickly. I really don't need him breathing down my back right now."

Raven stopped in his tracks and suddenly remembered something. He felt around his waste and inside his pockets anxiously. After finding nothing, he smacked his forehead.

"Damn it!" he cursed, "I lost the medicine! I must've dropped it when that stupid kid bumped into me." He kicked the ground in frustration, sending dozens of dirt clods soaring through the air. A calm, icy, wind blew causing Raven to shiver a little. It was getting cold. He decided he'd better get back to his hideout and check on Fiona. Hopefully she wasn't too sick and could last one day without medicine.

He finally reached the hideaway. The air had gotten colder. It was obvious winter was on its way. Raven hated winter. He hated how it would get cold, causing water to freeze into ice and how it would get darker earlier. Kind of funny and ironic that such a cold and dark teen would hate the cold and dark.

Once inside, he closed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. It was nice to be indoors again. 

But the relief ended once he opened his eyes. His organoid stood in front of him, a fresh red liquid dripping from his red-stained teeth.

"Shadow?" Raven raised an eyebrow, anxiety rising in his voice, "What happened? Where is Fiona?"

Shadow looked behind him and pointed to red puddle that laid in the center of the floor. A bloody trail led out of the room and into the den. Fiona was nowhere in sight.

Raven pushed aside the organoid viciously and stared at the puddle of blood. He looked back at his companion with furious eyes.

"What did you do to her?" he demanded. Calmly, Shadow licked his teeth clean. Raven made a face.

He ignored his companion and followed the trail. It led into the den, but didn't stop there. It continued into the kitchen. Another puddle collected there and a drawer was opened above it. It looked like something was taken out. It continued again into the bedroom. Raven followed the entire path and saw Fiona, sitting on the bed, wrapping a towel around her bloody left leg.

"Damn that organoid." Raven cursed under his breath. He saw Fiona look up at him, then look away. The towel was nearly soaked. Whatever happened didn't happen too long ago, he figured. Raven stood there for a few seconds, watching her try to fix her own wound. He was surprised that he felt slight shame in finding amusement in this.

"Care to explain?" he finally asked. Fiona didn't look at him.

"He was sleeping. I tried to escape. He stopped me." She said no more. It was easy to guess the rest of the story.

She expected him to smirk or mock her or tell her off. But instead he left the room.

Fiona lifted the once white, now red towel off her wound. Still bleeding.

Fiona winced. Shadow's bite wasn't hard enough to crush her leg or break a bone, but it did leave mean puncture marks.

Raven came back into the room with another towel, some bandages, and a bottle of rubbing alcohol. He knelt at Fiona's bedside and uncapped the bottle. He dabbed the small towel with some rubbing alcohol and hovered it over Fiona's leg.

"This'll sting a little," he warned. He pressed it against Fiona's leg and cleansed all her cuts. Fiona's winced even harder. It did not sting a little. It stung a lot.

However, there was something that could take her mind off the pain and that was Raven's display of concern. The look on his face wasn't of anger, but of worry. Worry for her?  Was he mad at Shadow for doing this to her?

Fiona shook her head. Get a grip. Remember what this guy did to you. What he _is_ doing to you.

Raven finished wrapping the bandages around her leg.

"You might have a limp in your walk for a while. But it should heal in a matter of days. You'll be fine," he said softly. Normally, Fiona would give a person a polite "thank you" after doing this for her. But this was no person. This was Raven. A guy who did something she could never forgive him for.

So instead, she gave him a swift kick in the face with her good leg. The impact and surprise knocked Raven down on the floor. He touched his cheek where the kick connected. He should've known he would've been vulnerable, kneeling down like that. But how was he supposed to know Fiona would gather the courage to do a thing such as that?

Fiona eyes shot daggers at the raven-haired warrior.

"I don't like you, Raven," she spat, her voice seething with a nasty hatred. Something very uncharacteristic of her. "You think you can win me over with compassion? After what you've done? Don't think I forgot. I'll never forget. You slaughtered my best friend and kidnapped me. No amount of compassion would make me forgive you for that. If you plan to kill me, do it now 'cause I will never comply with whatever you want. And if I ever get out of this and see Van, I will personally ask him to kill you myself. If he already doesn't have that idea, of course." Fiona folded her arms. Her emotions saturated in nothing but anger.

Raven looked back at her. At first he showed no expression. Then, slowly, a half-smile crept across his face. Soon that half-smile became a full smile. He chuckled. That chuckle became a small laugh. Then the laugh grew bigger. And bigger. Until it became a full-fledged, hearty laugh. He had to throw his head back to withstand the laugh. He placed a hand over his gut. He was laughing that hard. He couldn't contain himself!

Fiona felt small because of his booming laughter. He wasn't taking her seriously at all, it seemed. Foolish. Why did she try to stand up for herself in front of this monster? The past kind acts were flukes, she figured. There was no hope left. She felt like crying all over again.

Raven's laughter died down after awhile, until his face returned to it's serious look. He stood up and wiped a tear from his eye. 

"Well, princess, I didn't expect you to say something like that. You must have guts after all. It's not everyday somebody is able to kick me like that and live." He walked up to her and looked her in the eyes. "However, I can assure you that you're friend is not dead."

"What are you talking about? I saw you slaughter her in front of my very own eyes!"

"I'm a warrior. I know exactly where to stab someone when I want him dead and where to stab him when I just want him out of the way."

He turned his back to her and walked towards the door.

"Where are you going?" she asked, her voice soft again. He looked over to her.

"To prove it to you," he said and left. 

He passed Shadow on his way out. He sent him an icy glare and said with seething ire, "Don't do anything to harm her like that ever again. I don't want her dead, bleeding, or hurt. Got that?"

Shadow tilted his head in confusion. He was asking, "why?"

"I don't know," Raven said softly, "I just…don't."

He took his leave without saying another word. Once his companion was out the door, Shadow's mouth formed into a smile, letting out a small giggle.

Giggling organoids? What is the world coming to? I'm so sorry for the delay. But school is a total bitch! That's all I can say about it. Add to that random bouts of laziness and concentrating on video games and you have what's kept me from working on this story. Anyway, I'm apologize for any out-of-character-ness that happened (Raven going soft, Fiona's little death threat and Shadow going "too far"), but keep in mind what type of situation they're in. Or not and I'm just messing up. I hope it's not that. Anyway, more Raven/Fiona action coming up next chapter so stay tuned! Thank you for reviews and don't flame me, please. Nobody likes a flamer! Thank you so much and I promise to update when I get a chance. Catch ya later!


End file.
